


Father's Day

by MathClassWarfare



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Canon Related, Complicated Relationships, Estrangement, Fluff and Angst, Gen, POV Noctis Lucis Caelum, Parent-Child Relationship, Texting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-16
Updated: 2019-06-16
Packaged: 2020-05-13 02:16:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19241797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MathClassWarfare/pseuds/MathClassWarfare
Summary: It might be a made-up holiday to sell greeting cards, but it still brings a lot of very real shit to the surface.





	Father's Day

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [How to Make iOS Text Messages on AO3](https://archiveofourown.org/works/6434845) by [CodenameCarrot](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CodenameCarrot/pseuds/CodenameCarrot), [La_Temperanza](https://archiveofourown.org/users/La_Temperanza/pseuds/La_Temperanza). 



He leans forward on the host station, smiling down at Prompto, who’s posted up on the bench, explaining why 720’s punk is better than 740’s or even late 730’s punk—which is basically just pop music dressed up in a punk costume, and that’s fine if that’s what you’re in the mood for, but it’s not really very _punk_ is it? Noctis listens and nods, grateful for his best friend’s company and the reliable distraction he provides while the minutes tick by at work. 

A group of customers come through the door, interrupting Prompto’s lecture. They look like a family—probably going out to dinner to celebrate Father’s Day. He shows them to a table, and when he returns to the front of the restaurant, Prompto’s on his feet and beaming.

“You’re not going to believe this!” Prompto hops up and down.

“What?”

“My dad’s home early! He’s home right now! I should go before he cooks his own Father’s Day dinner. Oh! Should I bring some sushi? I should get some sushi!”

Noctis’s heart sinks a little. Prompto’s parents have been out of town, somewhere in Accordo. Noctis was about to ask if he wanted to come over after his shift, since neither of them had any plans, but now it looks like he’ll be spending the evening alone.

“Yeah, you should. I can put in an order to go.”

“ _Hmm_. I don’t know what to get.” Prompto chews on his bottom lip. “It’s a special occasion.” 

“I’ll just tell the guys ‘chef’s choice,’ they’ll make something good.” 

That has Prompto grinning again. “You’re a genius, Noct!”

He laughs and shakes his head. Doing his best to ignore his fluttering stomach, Noctis runs over to the sushi bar and asks them to go crazy. He clears off some tables, seats another couple of customers, and talks with Prompto about Little Malbuddy. When the bell rings, he goes back to collect four boxes full of colorful rolls and sashimi. It’s all perfect—some of this stuff isn’t even on the menu yet.

“Whoa! That’s a lot.”

He packs everything up in Prompto’s re-usable shopping bag. “You don’t want soy sauce packets right?” 

Prompto shakes his head ‘no,’ and lets out a breath. “Good thing I just got paid, dude.” He pulls out his wallet.

“Nope.” Noctis holds the bag out to him. 

“ _Nuh uh_. Let me buy my own dad dinner.”

“Take it.”

“ _Noct,_ ” Prompto whines, “you know I don’t-“

“I know. Just, take it. Please.”

Defeated, Prompto finally takes the bag from him. “Thanks buddy.”

“Don’t mention it. Have a good time with your dad.”

“You too.”

They wave goodbye and Noctis doesn’t correct the misunderstanding. He wouldn’t want Prompto to feel obligated to invite him over. 

When his shift ends, Noctis pays for Prompto’s sushi, eats his own dinner and says goodbye to his co-workers. He catches the eye of the plainclothes Crownsguard officer reading a book at her usual table and gives her a small nod. He doesn’t have it in him to be difficult today, so he follows the officer to her car. 

During the ride home, he gets a bunch of photos from Prompto of all the food arranged beautifully on plates, with little dishes of soy sauce and carved vegetable flowers. His dad must have done that. Noctis feels a wave of jealousy, and switches over to the text thread with his own father. He’s sure Regis read the message he sent this morning, but he hasn’t responded. Noctis briefly considers calling, but decides against it.

The car pulls up in front of his building and he thanks the officer before getting out. He waves at another officer posted in the lobby, and takes the elevator up to his floor. It’s not a surprise that the apartment is empty, but it still hits him when he walks through the door—hollowing him out a little. He kicks his shoes off into the pile. 

He’s not hungry, but habit moves his legs to the kitchen. He hangs on the refrigerator door, considering the contents and wondering about the source of that _smell_ , but closes it without taking anything. Then he drops himself onto the couch and switches on the tv. 

On the news channel, they’re re-broadcasting an official ceremony from earlier in the day. His dad is on the screen, and Noctis is startled by how much older he looks since the last time they saw each-other. The king is expressing his gratitude for all the brave men and women of the Kingsglaive, who are finally turning the tide of the war. The camera pans across the stage, zooming in on the row of people standing behind him. Noctis recognizes Clarus, his dad’s Shield, and the members of the Council. Off to the side is a little boy who can’t be any older than six, sitting very still in a chair that’s much too big for him. His hair is short except for one long braid. Next to the boy stands Ignis, resting his hand on the back of the chair, and wearing an unreadable expression on his face. So this is what he was busy with today. It makes perfect sense that Regis would ask one war orphan to look after another.

The king turns to introduce the boy, then Ignis whispers something in his ear and helps him down from the chair. They walk to the center of the stage and the child steps up on a small platform, so that Regis can pin a medal to his lapel without bending down. He’s accepting it on behalf of his father, who died last month. It makes Noctis’s heart hurt, but what can he do? The Empire is relentless. The boy bows, and the audience applauds, and Ignis leads him off the stage. The camera follows them, and Noctis clicks the mute button so he doesn’t have to listen to the talking heads rehash all the reasons they think his dad is losing to Niflheim. He wonders why the kid isn’t crying. He’s just looking around, wide-eyed, fingers touching the medal on his little jacket, and then the bead in his hair. Then the camera cuts back to the king—shaking hands with each of the Council members, patting Clarus on the back, smiling. Noctis wonders what the Amicitias are having for dinner tonight.

He looks at his phone again, at his half-hearted attempt to reach out to his dad on this bullshit holiday, and deflates. Noctis thought that maybe, since they were commemorating fathers at the Citadel, Regis might want to see him. But it was stupid to think today would be different from any other.

As long as Noctis can remember, his dad has been too busy for him. Or maybe he just doesn’t want to see him, and his duties are an excuse. People do say that Noctis looks a lot like his mom—it must hurt to be reminded of her. At least now that he has his own apartment, it feels more normal to go weeks without laying eyes on his dad (tv doesn’t count). He never comes to visit, but why would he? Noctis can just go back to the Citadel whenever Regis needs him for something. Noctis doesn’t get to need anything from him, though. That’s not how it works when your dad is the king, and there’s a whole country of people who need him more.

So he reaches out to the one person who can probably understand how he’s feeling, and might actually come over. The person who feels the most like family out of anybody. The person he really needs right now. He texts Ignis.

  
**Noctis:** Hey  
  
**Noctis:** You busy?  
  
**Ignis:** On my way  
  


Noctis feels less lonely already. 

**Author's Note:**

> I have some opinions about Regis, as you can tell. This is just my interpretation based on the bits and pieces that we get from canon about their relationship. I have read and enjoyed many other interpretations that people have, though.
> 
> As always, thanks to the folks on the r/ffxv discord server, especially the mods, for sharing your intense knowledge of canon and thoughtful theories, and thanks to the folks on the ffxv writer's server and the ffxv book club server for chatting about this stuff! It's fun to hash things out and explore these characters.


End file.
